July 12, 2010: Chakaia Booker art at the deCordova Sculpture Park

>> Rooney: THE SCULPTURE

PARK AND MUSEUM RECENTLY

OPENED ITS SUMMER SHOW.

A LOOK AT TWO DECADES WORTH

OF WORK BY ARTIST CHAKAIA

BOOKER.

JARED BOWEN HAS THIS PROFILE

OF BOOKER'S ART MADE OF A

MOST UNUSUAL MATERIAL.

RRT THE SCULPTURE OF ARTIST

CHAKAIA BOOKER BRIMS WITH

LIFE IN ITS SHADES OF GLASS.

PIECES TANTALIZED WITH

APPARENT TENT AGO ELS.

THEY ENCHANT WITH HUMAN

FORM.

AND SOMETIME THESE ARE JUST

BLATANTLY SUGGESTIVE.

>> SHE IS AN ENIGMA.

SHE IS A LITTLE HARD TO GET

TO KNOW.

SHE'S VERY QUIET.

SHE DOESN'T TALK MUCH ABOUT

HERSELF.

AND SHE DOESN'T TALK MUCH

ABOUT HER WORK EITHER.

>> Reporter: LEAVING PATRONS

HERE AT THE DECORDOVA

SCULPTURE PARK AND MUSEUM TO

DRAW THEIR OWN IMPRESSIONS

WITH AND THERE IS MUCH

OPPORTUNITY WITH.

CHAKAIA BOOKER'S WORK IN AND

OUT, THE INSTITUTION HAS

STAGED THE LARGEST EXHI

BUSINESS OF BOOKER'S WORK

EVER.

>> ALMOST UNANIMOUSLY SHE IS

DESCRIBED AS ONE OF THE MOST

SIGNIFICANT CONTEMPORARY

ARTISTS WORKING TODAY IN

SCULPTURE.

WHAT MAKES HER SO.

>> THERE ARE A LOT OF

REASONS.

CERTAINLY IT'S HER EXHI

BUSINESS TRACK RECORD IT IS

JUST A MAGNITUDE OF WHAT SHE

CAN DO PHYSICALLY WITH THIS

VERY WEIRD AND OBVERANT

MATERIAL.

ONCE PROCLAIMED THE QUEEN OF

RUBBER SOUL, BOOKER SKULL S

IN TIRES.

>> SHE FINDS AUTOMOBILE

TIRES, TRUCK TIRES, BICYCLE

TIRES, SCOOTER TIRES, TOY

TIRES, BRINGS THEM BACK TO

HER STUDIO, CUTS THEM UP

INTO ALL KINDS OF DIFFERENT

SHAPES AND SIZES AND THEN

COLEAGES THEM BACK TOGETHER

TO CREATE THESE ABSTRACT

SCULPTURES, LOOK WHAT SHE

HAS DONE WITH THE TIRES HERE

THEY ARE MUCH SMALLER, THEY

ARE MUCH POINTIER.

THIS SIDE IS ALMOST LIKE

HAIR OR FUROR BRISTLES.

THE OTHER SIDE IS ALMOST

LIKE SCALES LIKE ON A FISH.

>> Reporter: HERE IS THE

THING IS IT LOOKS LIKE IT IS

FEATHERY, LIKE IT IS GOING

TO BE NICE AND YOU ARE

ALLOWED TO TOUCH OUTSIDE AND

YOU TOUCH IT AND IT IS ROUGH

AND HARD.

I CAN'T EVEN COMPREHEND HOW

THIS WOMAN DOES THIS.

>> WITH TOOLS.

AND ASSISTANCE.

>> Reporter: WHY TIRES?

>> CHAKAIA HAS ALWAYS WORKED

WITH DISCARDED MATERIALS.

BECAUSE THEY'RE FREE.

AND THEY'RE PLENTIFUL.

>> Reporter: THE CURATOR HAS

FOLLOWED AND KNOWN BOOKER

FOR 20 YEARS.

BUT THE ART WORLD BEGAN TO

KNOW HER, HE SAYS, AFTER

THIS MONUMENTAL 20 FEET LONG

12 FEET HIGH PIECE BECAME

THE MOST-SEE AT THE 2000

WHITNY BIENNIAL.

>> THE OTHER SCULPTURES

DON'T DO AS MUCH WITH

MATERIALS THAT ARE A WHOLE

LOT EASIER TO USE.

AND YOU KNOW, JUST KEPT ME

COMING BACK AND WANTING

MORE.

TO SEE WHERE SHE WAS GOING

WITH ALL OF THIS.

>> Reporter: THE DECORDOVA

SHOW SPANS 20 YEARS OF

BOOKER'S CAREER.

MASSIVE PIECES AND SMALL

ONES.

THERE IS A STRIKING DEPAR

TURE TITLED DOROTHY'S SHOES

AND A COLLECTION OF PRINTS.

>> SHE MAKES THEM IN KIND OF

A SIMILAR WAY.

SHE TAKES GREAT BIG PIECES

OF PAPER, ROLLS THEM OUT ON

A TABLE IN THE STUDIO AND

PAINTS AND DRAWS ON THEM.

AND THEN SHE CUTS THEM UP

JUST LIKE SHE DOES THE

TIRES.

AND THEN SHE COULD LADGES

THEM BACK TOGETHER ON A

BOARD.

>> Reporter: ON VIEW HERE

BOOKER'S EVOLUTION AS AN

ARTIST REVIEWS HER WORK

GROWING MORE COMPLEX, MORE

CHALLENGING, MORE

FASCINATING THIS IS CHAKAIA

BOOKER IN AND OUT, AND NOT

TO BE MISSED.

>> Rooney: WHERE IS SHE FROM

IN WHO IS SHE.

>> I BELIEVE RIGHT OFF THE

BAT YOU ASKED THE QUESTION I

CAN'T ANSWER, I THINK IT IS

BROOKLYN, SHE IS ABOUT 57

YEARS OLD AND THERE IS A LOT

OF MYSTERY ABOUT HER.

I MISSED MY CHANCE

UNFORTUNATELY TO SEE HER AT

THE DECORDOVA AND INTERVIEW.

BUT HE TOLD ME EVEN IF YOU

DO TALK TO HER SHE WILL TALK

IN CIRCLES BECAUSE SHE

REALLY WANTS TO LEAVE HER

ART AS A MYSTERY AN NOT

LEAVE THE DETAILS WHICH IS

THE WONDERFUL THING ABOUT

IT.

IS YOU CAN WALK IN AND HAVE

YOUR OWN BLIND IMPRESSION

WITHOUT BEING STEERED IN ONE

DIRECTION OR ANOTHER.

>> IT IS SO INTERESTING

BECAUSE MANY OF THESE PIECES

ARE REALLY WHIMSICAL.

YOU GET THAT ONE THAT WAS

GOT HER ESTABLISHED IN THE

WHIT NYE, MORE OF THE WHITNY

VARIETY, THE ONE THAT

COLLECTS THOSE HORRORS EVERY

YEAR THAT ONE COULD HAVE

BEEN IN THAT CATEGORY.

>> WHAT BLEW PEOPLE AWAY WAS

FIRST OF ALL THE SCOPE OF

IT.

AND THAT SHE IS USING TIRES.

WHEN YOU LOOK AT THAT PIECE

WHICH IS SO MONUMENTAL,

FIRST OF ALL YOU HAVE ALL

THESE DIFFERENT FEELS.

I FELT A LITTLE SORT OF LIKE

I WAS BEING ENGULFED BY THE

PIECES, A LITTLE

INTIMIDATING WHEREAS I READ

SEBASTIAN SMEE'S PIECE AND

HE THOUGHT IT WAS HAIR, SORT

OF I THINK THINKING ABOUT

HER AFRICAN-AMERICAN

BACKGROUND AND HOW MUCH SHE

WORKS AFRICAN-AMERICAN

TEXTURES IT, HOW THE TIRES

HAVE TEXTURES IN DIFFERENT

FORMS AND MUCH LIKE FABRIC.

AND SO ON FROM THE CULTURE.

BUT SO WHEN YOU SEE A PIECE

LIKE THAT AND SEE HOW IT'S

DONE, IT'S REALLY, REALLY

FASCINATING.

>> I WONDER HOW SHE CUTS

THAT STUFF.

I MEAN HAS TIRES ALWAYS

BEEN --

>> IT'S ALWAYS TIRES.

AND HE SPECULATES THERE IS

DIFFERENT THEORIES, ONE, THE

OBVIOUS IT'S IMPORTANT TO

RECYCLE.

ANOTHER IS SHE IS TAKING

SOMETHING THAT HAS COME OUT

OF AMERICAN INDUSTRY, MODERN

AMERICAN FACTORIES AND DOING,

MAKING ART WITH IT.

AND THE THIRD IS AS I WAS

MENTIONING T IS IN REFERENCE

TO AFRICAN AMERICAN

TEXTURES.

>> Rooney: DOES SHE MAKE A

LIVING.

YOU CAN BUY ONE OF THESE,

WOULD YOU WANT TO HAVE IT

ANYWHERE.

>> SHE IS A VERY, VERY

SIGNIFICANT, AND VERY

IMPORTANT ARTIST NOW SO I'M

SURE A LOT OF HER PIECE GOES

DIRECTLY INTO MUSEUMS.

BUT I WISH I REALLY COULD

HAVE MET HER BECAUSE THE WAY

HE DESCRIBED HER, IN

ADDITION TO THE MYSTERY, YOU

SAW FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHS TOO,

SHE GETS UP AND HER THEORY

IS I HAVE TO SKULL MYSELF

FIRST IN THE MORNING SO THAT

IS WHAT SHE DOES, SHE

USUALLY WEARS A HEAD BEAST.

SHE IS VERY DRAMATIC LOOKING

JUST LIKE HER ART.

>> Rooney: ALL RIGHT, JARED

BOWEN, FASCINATING.

THAT IS IT FOR GREATER

BOSTON.

A REMIND TER TO TUNE INTO

THE NEW 89.7 WGBH AT NOON

TOMORROW.

MY GUEST IS ROBERT CHETACOFF,

THE ATTORNEY FOR ONE OF

THOSE ACCUSED RUSSIAN SPYS,

AND FOLLOWED BY CALLIE

CROSSLEY AT 1:00MENT

TOMORROW GOVERNOR DEVAL

PATRICK AS WE CONTINUE OUR

CONVERSATIONS WITH THE

CANDIDATE, TOMORROW AT 7:00.

I'M EMILY ROONEY.

GOOD NIGHT.+++ATH0